Who are First Citizens BancShares's competitors, and what are the alternatives?
First Citizens competes as two banks. At home it is a branch bank: its 2025 10-K says it held 11.8% of North Carolina deposits and 9.5% of South Carolina's at June 30, 2025, third and fourth by share, behind Bank of America and Truist in North Carolina (63.1% between them) and Bank of America, Wells Fargo and Truist in South Carolina. Its expansion markets bring new rivals: in Boston, where Bank of America, Citizens and Santander hold 47% of deposits, JPMorgan, PNC, M&T and KeyBank are also pushing in (American Banker, November 2025). The second bank is Silicon Valley Bank, renamed First Citizens Innovation Banking in October 2026, and there the rivals are different. JPMorgan has quadrupled its startup client base to nearly 12,000 since SVB failed in 2023 and names SVB, Mercury, Ramp, Stifel and Customers Bank as competitors (CNBC, March 2026); HSBC hired more than 40 SVB bankers in April 2023, and Stifel built a life-science venture bank from SVB staff in September 2025. That is where fintechs are the real rivals: Mercury won a conditional national bank charter in April 2026. The 10-K adds the non-bank lenders it meets in commercial lending: private equity firms, private credit providers, hedge funds and commercial finance companies.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]
Data as of Oct 19, 2026 · First Citizens profile updated Oct 19, 2026 · computed tables recalculate from the 140 bank profiles on this site · Markdown
What does First Citizens say about its competition?
"The financial services industry is highly competitive and continues to evolve as a result of changes in regulation, technology, product delivery systems, the accelerating pace of consolidation among financial service providers, and the general market and economic climate. BancShares competes with national, regional and local financial services providers. In recent years, the ability of non-bank financial entities to provide services previously limited to commercial banks has intensified competition. Non-bank financial service providers are not subject to the same significant regulatory restrictions as traditional commercial banks and, as such, can often operate with greater flexibility and lower cost structures. More than ever, customers have the ability to select from a variety of traditional and nontraditional alternatives. Competition is based on a number of factors including, among others, customer service, quality and range of products and services offered, price, reputation, interest rates on loans and deposits and customer convenience. Our non-bank services compete with other insurance companies, investment firms and brokerage firms."[1]
"FCB's largest notable concentration of deposits by market share as of June 30, 2025 were in North Carolina (including our nationwide Direct Bank deposits) and South Carolina at 11.8% and 9.5%, respectively, which makes FCB the third largest bank in North Carolina and the fourth largest bank in South Carolina based on deposit market share according to the FDIC Deposit Market Share Report. The two banks larger than FCB based on deposits in North Carolina were Bank of America and Truist Bank which collectively held 63.1% of North Carolina deposits. The three banks larger than FCB based on deposits in South Carolina were Bank of America, Wells Fargo and Truist Bank which collectively held 39.1% of South Carolina deposits." (Form 10-K for 2025, Item 1, "Competition", filed February 24, 2026.)[1]
Item 1A of the same filing names the rivals by type: "Our primary competitors include local, regional and national banks; credit unions; commercial finance companies; leasing companies; various wealth management providers; private equity firms; private credit providers; hedge funds; independent and captive insurance agencies; mortgage companies; and other non-bank providers of financial services. Some of our larger competitors have the capacity to offer products and services we do not offer, which may enable them to be more aggressive than us in competing for loans and deposits."[1]
Who competes with First Citizens in each of its businesses?
| Business line | Competitor | Type | Why it competes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home region: North and South Carolina | Bank of America | Bank | First Citizens' 2025 10-K names Bank of America as one of the two banks larger than it by deposits in North Carolina and one of three larger in South Carolina, using the FDIC's June 30, 2025 deposit market share data.[1] |
| Home region: North and South Carolina | Truist | Bank | The 10-K names Truist Bank with Bank of America as the two banks ahead of First Citizens in North Carolina, together holding 63.1% of the state's deposits, and among the three ahead of it in South Carolina.[1] |
| Home region: North and South Carolina | Wells Fargo | Bank | Wells Fargo is one of the three banks the 10-K lists as larger than First Citizens by South Carolina deposits; with Bank of America and Truist it held 39.1% of the state's deposits at June 30, 2025.[1] |
| Innovation banking: startups, venture capital and private equity | JPMorgan Chase | Bank | CNBC reported in March 2026 that JPMorgan quadrupled its startup client base to nearly 12,000, served by 550 bankers, after SVB's failure, hired SVB veterans including John China, and counts SVB (now owned by First Citizens) among its competitors in startup banking.[4][8] |
| Innovation banking: startups, venture capital and private equity | HSBC USA | Bank | HSBC's US unit hired dozens of SVB bankers in April 2023, more than 40 in the Bay Area, Boston and New York, to build a technology and healthcare practice; its Innovation Banking arm grew active clients by almost 60% in the first half of 2025.[5][9] |
| Innovation banking: startups, venture capital and private equity | Stifel | Bank | Stifel launched a life science and healthcare venture banking practice made up entirely of former SVB employees in September 2025; it says it more than doubled venture client deposits in a year and has more than $10 billion in loan commitments. CNBC lists Stifel among JPMorgan's startup-banking rivals.[6][4] |
| Innovation banking: startups, venture capital and private equity | Customers Bank | Bank | CNBC names Customers Bank, with SVB, Mercury, Ramp and Stifel, among the competitors in startup banking that JPMorgan is trying to beat.[4] |
| Innovation banking: startups, venture capital and private equity | Mercury | Fintech | CNBC lists Mercury among the startup-banking rivals that had carved a profitable niche serving founders and investors; Mercury received the OCC's conditional approval for a national bank charter in April 2026.[4][7] |
| Innovation banking: startups, venture capital and private equity | Ramp | Fintech | CNBC names Ramp, with Brex and Mercury, among the startups that built a profitable business serving founders and venture investors, and lists it among the competitors in startup banking.[4] |
| Branch and private banking in expansion markets (Boston) | Citizens Financial Group | Bank | American Banker (November 2025) reports that Bank of America, Citizens and Santander US hold 47% of Boston-area deposits, the market First Citizens entered through SVB and is building out with 500 staff and five branches.[2] |
| Branch and private banking in expansion markets (Boston) | Santander US | Bank | Santander US is one of the three banks that together hold 47% of Boston-area deposits, per the American Banker report on First Citizens' Boston expansion.[2] |
| Branch and private banking in expansion markets (Boston) | M&T Bank | Bank | American Banker names M&T, with PNC, among the banks looking to disrupt Bank of America's top share in Boston as First Citizens expands there.[2] |
| Branch and private banking in expansion markets (Boston) | PNC | Bank | PNC is named in the same American Banker report among the superregional and national banks moving into or expanding in Boston.[2] |
| Branch and private banking in expansion markets (Boston) | KeyBank | Bank | KeyCorp announced plans in September 2025 to expand in Boston, where it had commercial banking but no retail branches; CEO Chris Gorman called it a high-priority market (American Banker).[2] |
| Wealth management, brokerage and insurance | Investment and brokerage firms | Broker or asset manager | The 10-K says First Citizens' non-bank services, including the broker-dealer First Citizens Investor Services and the adviser First Citizens Asset Management, compete with other insurance companies, investment firms and brokerage firms.[1] |
| Wealth management, brokerage and insurance | Wealth management providers | Broker or asset manager | Item 1A of the 10-K lists 'various wealth management providers' among First Citizens' primary competitors; in Boston the bank hired 50 wealth advisers in 2025 to build out the business (American Banker).[1][2] |
| Commercial finance, leasing and private credit | Private credit providers and hedge funds | Non-bank lender | First Citizens' 2025 10-K names private equity firms, private credit providers and hedge funds among its primary competitors and notes that some non-bank competitors operate in less stringent regulatory environments.[1] |
| Commercial finance, leasing and private credit | Commercial finance and leasing companies | Non-bank lender | The 10-K lists commercial finance companies and leasing companies among its primary competitors; its Commercial Bank segment provides asset-based lending, factoring and leasing, and its Rail segment leases railcars and locomotives.[1] |
How do the AI and digital offerings of First Citizens's competitors compare?
First Citizens first, then each competitor. Use-case counts, index scores and latest moves are computed from our profiles of each company; "No profile" means this site has no page on it yet.
| Company | AI or digital offering | On the record (our profiles) | Latest dated AI move |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Citizens BancShares (this page) | An enterprise AI program being built, not bought[10][11][12] | Index 67.7 (#39); 14 use cases, 12 in production | First Citizens Innovation Banking launched; SVB name retired (Oct 6, 2026)[3] |
| Bank of America | Erica: more than 3 billion interactions and nearly 50 million users by August 2025, 2 million interactions a day by January 2026.[13][14] | Index 97.3 (#1); 18 use cases, 16 in production | Treasury, FinCEN and OCC impose $1.21 billion in AML and sanctions penalties (Oct 13, 2026)[15][16][17] |
| Truist | Truist Assist, an AI chatbot and mobile assistant with more than 12.5 million requests since 2023, over 9 million handled end to end by AI.[18][19] | Index 82.6 (#16); 15 use cases, 13 in production | Mid-table on AI-judged reputation (Sep 18, 2026)[20] |
| Wells Fargo | Fargo assistant in the mobile app, more than 1 billion interactions in under three years by March 2026.[21] | Index 88.8 (#7); 16 use cases, 13 in production | Q3 2026 call: AI agents in code, marketing, cyber, underwriting (Oct 13, 2026)[22][23] |
| JPMorgan Chase | LLM Suite for about 250,000 employees; a technology budget of nearly $20 billion in 2026.[24][25] | Index 89 (#6); 15 use cases, 8 in production | Q3 2026 call: outside AI agents stay blocked; AI spend put near $700 million (Oct 13, 2026)[26][27][28] |
| HSBC USA | The group AI programme: Google Cloud, Mistral and a central model platform[29][30][31][32] | Index 81.9 (#17); 16 use cases, 7 in production | Ant Digital test: AI agents pay with HSBC tokenised deposits (Oct 9, 2026)[33] |
| Stifel | Stifel's advisor-first AI stance and fund-banking-driven balance sheet[34][35][36][37][38] | Index 6.5 (#104); 13 use cases, 12 in production | CEO on CNBC: look at companies benefiting from AI, not just those building it (Oct 7, 2026)[39] |
| Customers Bank | OpenAI strategic collaboration, AI Innovation Lab and cubiX payments network[40][41][42][43] | Index 75.5 (#29); 16 use cases, 11 in production | Q2 2026 10-Q: no AI language (Aug 7, 2026)[44][45] |
| Mercury | Mercury Command (June 16, 2026) turns natural-language requests into staged financial work held for review.[46] | 6 use cases, 5 in production | Mercury Books: AI-driven accounting (Sep 16, 2026)[47] |
| Ramp | Ramp agents, launched July 9, 2025, review expenses against policy; accounts-payable and procurement agents followed.[48][49] | 10 use cases, 5 in production | $1.85 billion at a $60 billion valuation (Oct 15, 2026)[50][51] |
| Citizens Financial Group | CiZi, the in-app AI assistant, credited with a 44% drop in call volume.[52] | Index 85.3 (#11); 20 use cases, 10 in production | Q4 2026 Business Pulse: small-business AI spending rising (Sep 29, 2026)[53] |
| Santander US | ONE Transformation: shared platforms, AI for every employee, agentic commerce[54][55][56][57][58] | Index 87.2 (#8); 15 use cases, 10 in production | Riley: AI lets her 'vibe code' a CRM tool herself (Oct 1, 2026)[59] |
| M&T Bank | Microsoft Copilot for 16,000 of 22,000 employees (September 2025).[60] | Index 75.5 (#28); 14 use cases, 10 in production | Rajwani on AI agents and deposit runs (Oct 1, 2026)[61] |
| PNC | PNC AI factory[62][63][64][65] | Index 68.2 (#38); 14 use cases, 8 in production | Head of ATM Banking hired with an AI mandate (Sep 25, 2026)[66] |
| KeyBank | Conversational AI in the contact centre and 'cognitive banking' in the app[67][68][69] | Index 80 (#21); 16 use cases, 10 in production | Gessner ranked No. 3 in American Banker's Most Powerful Women in Banking NEXT (Oct 1, 2026)[70] |
| Investment and brokerage firms | Not disclosed | No profile | Not disclosed |
| Wealth management providers | Not disclosed | No profile | Not disclosed |
| Private credit providers and hedge funds | Not disclosed | No profile | Not disclosed |
| Commercial finance and leasing companies | Not disclosed | No profile | Not disclosed |
Who should look beyond First Citizens, and where?
| If you are | Look at | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Customers who want a branch outside First Citizens' regions | A bank with a national branch network, such as JPMorgan Chase | First Citizens' 10-K says its branches and offices are predominantly in the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest and Western United States, with more than 500 at December 31, 2025, and a nationwide Direct Bank for deposits. JPMorgan Chase Bank's 10-K describes U.S. branches in 48 states and Washington, D.C.[1][71] |
| Founders who want a software-first business account without a relationship banker | Mercury or Ramp | CNBC describes Mercury and Ramp as startups that carved out a profitable niche serving founders and VC investors. Mercury received conditional approval for a national bank charter in April 2026 and sells Mercury Command, an AI tool that stages financial work for review; Ramp sells AI agents for expense review.[4][7][46][48] |
| Startups that want one bank from seed round to IPO | JPMorgan Chase's innovation economy business | JPMorgan told CNBC (March 2026) that its goal is to be the one-stop shop for founders from seed round to initial public offering, with startups covered by its commercial bank, founders by its private bank and investment banking advice along the way. First Citizens' broker-dealer provides underwriting and private placement services but it reports no investment-banking segment.[4][1] |
| Life-science companies that want venture banking next to an investment bank | Stifel | Stifel's venture banking team, built in part from former SVB bankers, pitches its investment bank as an exit and fundraising route for life-science clients alongside commercial banking and venture debt (Banking Dive, September 2025).[6] |
| Consumers who want an AI assistant in their banking app | Bank of America (Erica) or Truist (Truist Assist) | First Citizens has named no customer-facing assistant; AskFirst serves branch bankers and its fact sheet keeps AI use cases internal-facing. Its two larger home-state rivals both run one: Erica (3 billion-plus interactions by August 2025) and Truist Assist (more than 12.5 million requests since 2023).[12][10][13][18] |
How does First Citizens' innovation bank compare with its startup-banking rivals?
Each bank's own figures, as reported; units and dates differ.
| Bank | Scale disclosed | How it built the business | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Citizens Innovation Banking (formerly SVB) | Client funds $108 billion and loans $44 billion at year-end 2025; nearly 4,000 new clients in two years; 40% of the Forbes 2025 AI 50 are clients | Acquired from the FDIC in March 2023; renamed in October 2026 | March and October 2026[72][3][73] |
| JPMorgan Chase | Nearly 12,000 startup clients, 550 bankers; startup revenue doubled in 2023 | Startup banking since 2016; hired SVB veterans and bought First Republic | March 2026[4] |
| HSBC USA | Innovation Banking active clients up almost 60% in the first half of 2025 | More than 40 SVB bankers hired in April 2023 | December 2025[5][9] |
| Stifel | Venture client deposits more than doubled in a year; more than $10 billion in loan commitments | Venture and fund banking since 2019; SVB teams hired in 2023 and 2025 | September 2025[6] |
Who are First Citizens' biggest competitors?
By line: in its Carolinas home market, Bank of America, Truist and Wells Fargo, the banks its 2025 10-K names as larger by deposits; in innovation banking, JPMorgan Chase, HSBC, Stifel, Customers Bank and the fintechs Mercury and Ramp; in expansion markets such as Boston, Citizens, Santander US, M&T, PNC and KeyBank; and in commercial lending, private credit providers, private equity firms, hedge funds and commercial finance companies, which the 10-K names by type.[1][4][5][2]
Who competes with Silicon Valley Bank, now First Citizens Innovation Banking, for startups?
JPMorgan Chase most visibly: it quadrupled its startup client base to nearly 12,000 after SVB failed and names SVB, Mercury, Ramp, Stifel and Customers Bank as competitors (CNBC, March 2026). HSBC hired more than 40 SVB bankers in April 2023 for a US technology and healthcare practice, and Stifel built a life-science venture bank from former SVB staff in September 2025.[4][5][6][3]
Is Mercury a competitor of First Citizens?
In startup banking, yes. CNBC lists Mercury with SVB, Ramp, Stifel and Customers Bank among the competitors JPMorgan faces for founders and venture investors. Mercury received the OCC's conditional approval for a national bank charter in April 2026, and it markets AI tools such as Mercury Command.[4][7][46]
How does First Citizens compare with Bank of America in North Carolina?
Bank of America is larger. First Citizens' 2025 10-K says it held 11.8% of North Carolina deposits at June 30, 2025, third in the state, while Bank of America and Truist together held 63.1%. On AI, Bank of America runs Erica, with more than 3 billion interactions by August 2025; First Citizens has no customer-facing assistant on the record and describes its AI program as built conservatively.[1][13][10]
What are alternatives to First Citizens for startups?
JPMorgan Chase, which aims to serve founders from seed round to IPO; HSBC's US Innovation Banking practice; Stifel, which pairs venture banking with an investment bank; and the fintechs Mercury and Ramp, which CNBC describes as having carved a profitable niche serving founders. First Citizens says 40% of the Forbes 2025 AI 50 bank with its innovation division.[4][9][6][72]
Does First Citizens compete with private credit funds?
Yes, by its own account. Item 1A of its 2025 10-K lists private equity firms, private credit providers and hedge funds among its primary competitors, along with commercial finance and leasing companies, and warns that some non-bank competitors operate under less stringent regulation. Its innovation bank also works with lenders: SVB has a venture-debt relationship with Pinegrove Venture Partners.[1][74]
Is First Citizens expanding beyond the Southeast?
Yes. It completed the purchase of 138 BMO branches across the Midwest, Great Plains and West on September 4, 2026, and is building out Boston, where it has about 500 staff and five branches and hired 50 wealth advisers in 2025. Its 10-K says branches are predominantly in the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest and West, plus a nationwide Direct Bank.[75][76][2][1]
- First Citizens BancShares Annual Report on Form 10-K for 2025
- Why Boston is the next battleground for First Citizens
- First Citizens Bank Launches New Innovation Banking Brand
- Inside JPMorgan Chase's push to become the startup world's new Silicon Valley Bank
- HSBC hires Silicon Valley Bank bankers to focus on tech, healthcare
- Stifel hires 13 from SVB for life science, healthcare team
- Corporate Decision #1372: De Novo Charter Application, Mercury Bank, N.A., Salt Lake City, Utah
- Can JPMorgan Chase fill the startup banking void?
- HSBC Releases 2026 Innovation Horizons Report
- Frontier AI Fact Sheet
- First Citizens Bank Corporate Profile 1Q26
- A Q&A With Scott Richardson: AI at First Citizens Bank
- A Decade of AI Innovation: BofA's Virtual Assistant Erica Surpasses 3 Billion Client Interactions
- How Bank of America's Erica does the work of 11,000 people
- U.S. Treasury Announces Record Enforcement Actions Against Bank of America
- OCC Imposes $750 Million Assessment Against Bank of America for Deficient BSA/AML Compliance
- BofA fined $1.21 billion over AML
- Exhibit 99.3: First quarter 2026 earnings presentation (Form 8-K)
- Exhibit 99.3: Second quarter 2026 earnings presentation (Form 8-K)
- People use AI to gauge banks' reputations, and its verdicts are harsh
- Wells Fargo Reaches Major Digital Milestones
- Wells Fargo Enhances Banking Capabilities Using AI and Digital Assets
- Wells Fargo Reports Third Quarter 2026 Net Income of $6.0 billion, or $1.87 per Diluted Share
- How JPMorganChase democratized employee access to gen AI
- JPMorgan Chase plans to deploy more powerful AI agents this year
- JPMorgan Chase blocks outside AI agents like Muse, Instinct from directly accessing accounts
- JPMorgan CEO Dimon warns customers of 'liability transfer' with AI
- JPMorgan warns of risks to consumers who rely on AI agents
- HSBC introduces AI role to the C-suite
- HSBC names generative AI a leading investment area
- HSBC Expects Over $100 Million Gains From Using Google AI Tools
- HSBC signs deal to use Mistral's AI tools
- Ant Digital Technologies and HSBC announce successful AI agent micropayment technical verification test
- Stifel Reports Second Quarter 2026 Results
- Stifel's earnings expose Wall Street's AI blind spot
- Artificial Intelligence: Runway for Growth (Outlook 2026)
- Stifel Financial Corp (SF) Q2 2026 Earnings Call Highlights: Record Revenue and Strong ...
- Stifel Financial Corp. Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2025
- Stifel CEO Ron Kruszewski: We should be looking at companies benefiting from AI, not just those building AI
- Customers Bank Announces Strategic Collaboration with OpenAI to Redefine the Commercial Banking Operating Model
- OpenAI will embed staff at Customers Bank under multiyear deal
- Customers Bancorp Q4 2025 Investor Presentation
- Customers Bancorp Reports Results for Second Quarter 2026
- Customers Bancorp, Inc. Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2026
- Customers Bancorp, Inc. Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2026
- Introducing Mercury Command
- Mercury Launches Intelligent Accounting with Mercury Books (Business Wire via Morningstar)
- Ramp agents: Let finance teams do finance
- AP just became autonomous
- Ramp reaches $60B valuation as it pushes deeper into AI
- Ramp Reaches $60 Billion Valuation as Annualized Revenue Tops $2 Billion
- Citizens Financial's Michael Ruttledge is #43 on the Most Innovative People in Finance ranking
- Citizens Q4 2026 Business Pulse Finds Rising Small Business Optimism Amid Steady Hiring and Increased AI Spending
- Santander's Botin Sees €1 Billion AI Boost Amid Efficiency Push
- Santander Equips All Workers With AI and Seeks $1.15 Billion Business Value
- Santander's Getnet Plugs Merchants Into Agentic Commerce
- Santander, Webster lay out post-deal management plan
- Santander Expands U.S. Presence with Completion of Webster Acquisition
- The Most Powerful Women in Banking Women to Watch, #1, Christiana Riley, Santander U.S.
- How M&T Bank ensures data quality as it implements gen AI
- AI agent bank runs possible but unlikely, experts say
- Why PNC is building its own 'AI factory'
- PNC's solution to rising AI costs: build its own AI
- PNC's New Mobile App Delivers an Intuitive, Personalized Experience to Help Clients Seamlessly Manage Their Day-to-Day Financial Lives
- PNC at Barclays conference: growth, AI and branch push (transcript)
- Mark Williamson hired as Head of ATM Banking
- KeyBank Taps $100 Million Increase in Technology Spend (AI calls at $0.25 vs $9)
- KeyBank bets on relationships over tech budgets
- How KeyBank is creating 'cognitive banking' with AI
- The Most Powerful Women in Banking NEXT, #3, Emily Gessner, KeyBank
- JPMorgan Chase & Co. Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025
- The Void That Never Was (Silicon Valley Bank)
- First Citizens Ending Silicon Valley Bank Name After Three Years
- Pinegrove Credit Partners and Temasek Announce Strategic Partnership to Support Innovation Through Venture Debt
- BMO Completes Sale of 138 U.S. Branches to First Citizens Bank
- First Citizens to acquire 138 BMO branches
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